Country Style Smothered Cube Steak (Printable)
Tender cube steak in savory onion-mushroom gravy, perfect over mashed potatoes or rice for a cozy meal.
# What You’ll Need:
→ Meat
01 - 4 cube steaks, about 1.1 lb total
→ Coating
02 - 1/2 cup all-purpose flour
03 - 1 teaspoon kosher salt
04 - 1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
05 - 1/2 teaspoon smoked paprika
→ Vegetables
06 - 1 large yellow onion, thinly sliced
07 - 1 cup sliced mushrooms
→ Gravy
08 - 2 cups beef broth
09 - 2 tablespoons Worcestershire sauce
10 - 1/4 cup heavy cream (optional, for creamier gravy)
→ For Frying
11 - 3 tablespoons vegetable oil
12 - 2 tablespoons unsalted butter
# How To Make It:
01 - Combine the flour, salt, pepper, and paprika in a shallow dish. Dredge each cube steak thoroughly in the seasoned flour, shaking off any excess.
02 - Heat the vegetable oil and 1 tablespoon of butter in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Add the coated steaks and sear for 2 to 3 minutes per side until deeply browned, working in batches if needed. Remove the steaks and set aside.
03 - In the same skillet, add the remaining butter. Sauté the sliced onions for 5 minutes until softened and translucent, then add the mushrooms and cook for an additional 3 minutes until lightly caramelized.
04 - Pour in the beef broth and Worcestershire sauce, scraping up any browned bits from the bottom of the pan. Bring the liquid to a gentle simmer.
05 - Return the seared cube steaks to the skillet, nestling them into the onion and mushroom mixture. Reduce the heat to low, cover, and simmer for 30 to 35 minutes until the beef is fork-tender.
06 - For a creamier gravy, stir in the heavy cream during the final 5 minutes of cooking. Taste and adjust the seasoning with salt and pepper as desired.
07 - Serve the steaks hot, spooning generous amounts of the onion-mushroom gravy over each portion. Pair with creamy mashed potatoes, steamed rice, or buttered egg noodles.
# Expert Advice:
01 -
- The gravy practically builds itself right in the pan, which means all those browned bits become concentrated flavor you never want to wash away.
- Cube steak is budget friendly and transforms into something fork tender after a long slow simmer in that savory onion mushroom sauce.
02 -
- Do not skip scraping the browned bits off the bottom of the pan when you add the broth because that fond is where half the flavor lives.
- Resist the urge to crank the heat during the simmer because low and slow is what turns tough cube steak into something melt in your mouth tender.
03 -
- Let the steaks sit at room temperature for about fifteen minutes before searing so they cook more evenly and the flour adheres better.
- If the gravy is too thin at the end, let it simmer uncovered for a few extra minutes, and if it is too thick, a splash of broth brings it right back.